San Diego

San Diego, California is everything you have ever heard it to be.  Terrific weather, warm and sunny.  Great people willing to help with directions and suggestions on things to see.  And it is BEAUTIFUL!

We stayed just out of town in El Cajon for the two weeks we were there.  The third week we went north and stayed in Carlsbad near the beaches. Our dear friends, Lori and Andy Russo, were there visiting their daughter.  But you'll have to wait, as I will try to begin with El Cajon first.

  From both locations we were able to drive into San Diego and spend time seeing the many sights.  This isn't in exact order.  Too hard to figure it out, but most of what we saw will be included.  We were especially blessed to visit with two Navy families stationed in San Diego.  First we had a delightful dinner with our nephew, Vinny, and his girl, Jennifer.  Listening to their hopes and dreams for the future and what they are doing to get themselves to that place, makes us proud of the special young man he has become, and their willingness to help each other.  

Then a few days later, we spent an afternoon with Warren and Emily Hakes and their six children.  What a wonderful time we had!  Warren grew up in our church in Manlius and we are good friends with his parents.  It was a very precious time for us to reconnect with him and Emily.  Their children are joyful, busy, happy kids and they enjoyed seeing our house on wheels.  They also like brownies!  It meant a lot to us that they took time to get together with us.  Thank you, Hakes family!

Now on to the sightseeing!  First was the USS Midway.  This aircraft carrier saw action from the end of WW II through 1992. Until 1955, she was the largest ship in the world.  What a treat to step on board and tour this amazing vessel.

 

 At the Fish Market, near by, is a tribute to Bob Hope and all the USO tours he did.

 Plus the famous kissing couple.

We drove over the beautiful Coronado Bridge to Coronado Island.

 

Had to see the historic Del Coronado Hotel.  It is lovely with its white sand beach,

Another day we headed for La Jolla.  Went to see Mission Beach and had our picnic lunch at Pacific
Beach before we went to the Birch Aquarium and to watch feeding time at their beautiful tide pools on the UC San Diego campus.

We decided to drive northeast one day into the mountains, and see what we could see.  We went through Cuyamaca State Park.  

We drove into the towns of Rancho and Julian and circled back toward El Cajon.

A really good day seeing a different side of California.  By the way, the Julian Pie Company makes REALLY good pies!!  Just saying....

The day we spent on Point Loma was sunny and clear.  The view alone was reason enough to visit the lighthouse.  All the Navy ships go right  by the point as the Navy base is in the harbor.   

The old lighthouse is historically just what you think a lighthouse should be.  The new one is electronic and sits low on the beach where it is actually visible from a ship!  But no one will ever take pictures of the new one and the old one is beautiful.

 

 

The National Cemetery at Point Loma is a lovely tribute to our veterans and their families.  The beauty of this spot is not just the view but the also the peacefulness.  

We also enjoyed the visitors center that introduces the National Monument at Carbrillo.

Another day trip was to Palomar Observatory.  The drive up Palomar Mountain was breathtaking.

 

The Hale telescope's 200 inch reflecting mirror was made in Corning, NY at Corning Glass.  How cool is that!  

 

We also visited the San Diego Zoo. A lot was under construction but we enjoyed seeing the many animals we could see.  Here is just a sample.

We looked forward so much to being with our friends, Lori and Andy Russo!  And now it was here!!  We enjoyed our time with them and their beautiful daughter.  Here are some of the highlights of our week together.

We visited the Self Realization Center overlooking the ocean and the setting was so lovely.

Seal Beach

Balboa Park - specifically saw the auto museum and  the botanical gardens.

 

 

 

Carlsbad Flower Farm was beautiful.

Grabbing dinner at the Oceanside Street Fair and an evening walk on Oceanside Pier.

 

  

The four of us decided to go on a whale watch, which are very popular as the whales migrate right off this part of the coast.  Of course, we never saw any whale but we did see dolphins and had a whale of

a good time together!

Naturally, there were lots of shared conversations, meals, walks, and laughs.  
We also watched some amazing sunsets over the Pacific.  Lovely moments at the end of fun, interesting days.

 On Sunday we had to say good bye to our friends and to Carlsbad. The next day we were moving on.

And they had a few more days to spend with Lindsay before heading home.  

It was great to see them after six months of travel.  We miss so many of you and really appreciate that we got to spend this time with Russo's.  Thank you, Lori and Andy, for meeting us here on the West Coast.  It was hard to say good bye, but we'll be home in August!